Temporal Dynamics and Treatment Outcomes of Hepatitis C Virus/Human Immunodeficiency Virus Coinfection: A Multicenter Retrospective Study from South Korea.

Background/aims: Due to the very low incidence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in South Korea, epidemiological data on hepatitis C virus (HCV)/HIV coinfection are limited. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of patients with HCV/HIV coinfection in South Korea.

Methods: We retrospectively collected data from patients diagnosed with HCV/HIV coinfection at 12 academic hospitals in South Korea from 2009 to 2020.

Results: A total of 124 patients were included in this study; most patients were males (n=112, 90.3%), and the mean age was 46.5±13.5 years. Among the study patients, 11 (8.9%) had cirrhosis, and seven (5.6%) tested positive for the hepatitis B surface antigen. During the follow-up period (mean period: 67.4 months), two patients (1.6%) developed hepatocellular carcinoma, and nine (7.3%) died. Of the 112 patients (90.3%) who underwent HCV genotype testing, most were infected with HCV genotype 2 (n=53, 47.3%) and genotype 1b (n=41, 36.6%). In particular, HCV genotype 1a was identified in 12.5% (n=14) of patients. Ninety-one patients (73.4%) received antiviral therapy, with 104 antiviral treatments administered overall. The sustained virologic response rate was significantly higher in patients treated with direct-acting antiviral agents (DAA) than in those receiving pegylated interferon-based treatment (89.0% vs 58.1%, p<0.001).

Conclusions: In South Korea, patients with HCV/HIV coinfection were predominantly male and younger and exhibited a higher prevalence of genotype 1a than those with HCV monoinfection. These patients demonstrated a significantly better treatment response to DAA treatment than to interferon-based therapy.